A kitchen worker was found dead in the walk-in freezer at Atlanta's distinctive Westin Peachtree Plaza. (Shutterstock)

(Newser)
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A 61-year-old woman appears to have died after getting stuck inside a walk-in freezer at the Westin Peachtree Plaza hotel in downtown Atlanta, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. Carolyn Robinson's family contacted police when she didn't return home from her shift on Monday. Police, reviewing surveillance footage, believe the kitchen worker entered the freezer around 8pm Monday, according to the AP. Her body wasn't found until 9am Tuesday—13 hours later. "She was a nice person," a coworker tells WSB-TV. "She got along with everybody. Everybody loved her."

There is a mechanism inside the freezer that allows people to get out, though police aren't sure if it was working. Authorities hope an autopsy will reveal if Robinson had a medical condition that would have prevented her from getting out of the freezer. Unspecified evidence inside the freezer shows Robinson did try to escape. Police don't suspect foul play at the moment. “We’re still combing through the video just to make sure that there’s nothing else going on,” the Journal-Constitution quotes a police spokesperson.

Westin hotels are very upscale. I would hope that they had trained any employee that might have access to the freezer with the protocol necessary if they were accidentally locked in. IF they did not, shame on them. If they did, and she failed to pay attention or follow protocol, it is on her. I feel for her family and friends, but this is not necessarily the employers fault. All the same, her family and friends are hurting and suffering her loss.

fedup taxpayer

Mar 24, 2016 5:36 PM CDT

her family is going to be lawyering up very soon.

fractal

Mar 23, 2016 2:01 PM CDT

If the door didn't have its escape handle working, expect a multi-million dollar settlement.